The NEPSAC Girls Scholastic Showcase tips off in a week at Worcester Academy.
And the first question I always ask is: Who's new here?
The transfer cycle between area federation high schools, or out of the region, and prep schools is one of the spring's dominant topics. Though I don't know every new name to NEPSAC yet, I've learned about a bunch of the local star talent who made the move. You'll recognize several of these names from our high school coverage last winter, and I expect most of them to shake up the landscape of prep contenders next season.
Here are 12 incoming NEPSAC guards to know right away.
NEPSAC SCHOLASTIC SHOWCASE:Â Full schedule for the three-day event
Naya Annigeri, Nobles
Class of 2028, 5-8 guard
Hometown: Medfield, Mass.
Annigeri is the highest-profile guard transferring to NEPSAC. She won our MIAA Player of the Year award this past winter, leading Medfield through a perfect season to its third consecutive Div. 2 championship. Annigeri took home three state titles and three Tri-Valley League MVP awards in three years at Medfield. She now reclassifies and becomes an immediate impact two-way guard for Nobles, and her sister Kameli (a 2030 guard) will make the same transition.
Genesis Castro, Brimmer & May
Class of 2029, 5-4 guard
Hometown: Barrington, R.I.
As a sophomore, Castro guided Barrington to the RIIL state championship, averaging 16.4 points per game and making the Providence Journal's all-state first team. She's a quick, crafty point guard who excels at finding lanes to the basket, and she'll form a tough backcourt duo with classmate Jaliah Duplessy.
Gianah Estevez, Marianapolis
Class of 2027, 5-6 guard
Hometown: Worcester, Mass.
Estevez joins Marianapolis for a postgrad year after helping lift Worcester South to MIAA statewide prominence. She helped South make the Div. 2 final in back-to-back seasons, and as a senior, Estevez averaged 16.9 points and 10 rebounds in a Div. 1 quarterfinal run. She's a strong, tough guard who was the best scorer on the team and one of several standout defenders.
Giada and Sofia Lanni, Hoosac
Class of 2028, 5-10 guards
Hometown: Latham, N.Y.
The Lanni twins join NEPSAC after leading Shaker High to a Class AAA sectional championship in New York, each averaging 10 points per game. They've both received Division 1 offers from a handful of New York colleges, most recently Albany and Iona. Both are also strong, smooth scoring guards who can pull up in the mid-range and reliably knock down 3s.
Layla Ljubuncic, MacDuffie
Class of 2028, 5-7 guard
Hometown: Burlington, Conn.
An elite perimeter scorer, Ljubuncic reclassifies and transfers after averaging 24.8 points, 6.0 rebounds, 3.0 assists and 3.0 steals at Lewis Mills. She set the school record with 103 3-pointers made in a season and 11 in a game. Ljubuncic also won Connecticut's A Shot For Life shooting challenge last summer.
Lila McCarty, Newman
Class of 2029, 5-9 guard
Hometown: Sharon, Mass.
McCarty has shined quickly at both her previous Sharon high school and in the Shooting Touch AAU program. She's primarily a movement shooter right now who can heat up behind the arc, but McCarty also shows flashes of court vision and solid defense. I expect her to fit in well with Newman's offense, which highlights a bunch of versatile guards and wings.
Celia Neilson, Tilton
Class of 2027, 6-0 guard
Hometown: Georgetown, Mass.
Another MIAA star taking the postgrad route, Neilson powered Bishop Fenwick's Division 3 championship this winter with 17.2 points, 6.7 rebounds, 4.9 steals and 4.2 assists per game. She landed on our All-MIAA First Team. Neilson's size and physicality at guard makes her a difficult matchup on both ends of the floor.
Maya Ocana-Saunders, MacDuffie
Class of 2030, 5-6 guard
Hometown: Springfield, Mass.
Ocana-Saunders is actually returning to MacDuffie after she played there during the 2024-25 season. Last year she returned to Springfield Central as a freshman and averaged 10.6 points for the runner-up in MIAA Division 1. Ocana-Saunders is a consistent driving point guard who impressed me on iBelieve Elite's top 16U team at the Atlantic City Showcase.
Maliah Pierre, Dexter Southfield
Class of 2027, 5-9 guard
Hometown: Whitman, Mass.
Pierre, who has not reclassified, joins Dexter after a standout MIAA run with Whitman-Hanson that included All-MIAA Third Team honors from us this past season. She's an explosive driving scorer and high-level team defender who averaged 16.5 points, eight rebounds and three steals per game.
Mollie Puffer, Phillips Exeter
Class of 2029, 5-10 guard
Hometown: Sanford, Maine
Puffer is a rising star in Maine after helping Sanford to the Class A regional semifinals as a sophomore before reclassifying. She's a deep-range shooter and improving overall scorer who averaged 17.5 points and 9.5 rebounds per game. Puffer has a Division 1 offer from Mercyhurst.
Jaidelis Rivera, Marianapolis
Class of 2028, 5-1 guard
Hometown: New London, Conn.
Rivera is as tough as you'll see from a small guard. Her handle and quickness off the dribble give her advantages running the offense, and she also puts in tremendous effort as a perimeter defender. Rivera helped New London win the ECC Div. 1 championship game last winter with 19 points.
